Monday 28th April 2014

Mazda RX-8: PH Carpool

Some pretty sturdy man maths for a young PHer result in a second rotary Mazda on his driveway

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Name: Ed Scott
Car: Mazda RX-8 R3
Owned Since: July 2013
Previously owned: Renault Clio, Vauxhall Corsa - regrettably, RX-7

The man has a taste for rotary Mazdas...

Why I bought it:
"With an RX-7 FD as a weekend car and a terrible Corsa B as a daily, I needed a cheap, economical and reliable car to get me to and from work to replace the Corsa which was falling to pieces. After a lot of man maths I somehow decided that I should buy an RX-8 instead. After yet more man maths, tripling my original budget, I decided to go for one of the later R3 models and after a week of searching found a lovely example owner by a fellow Rotorhead."

What I wish I'd known:
"Owning an FD, I already knew the good and bad points of the rotary engine and I did a lot of research before buying, so there's nothing really that took me by surprise after making the purchase - though I have to say fuel economy is slightly worse than I was expecting."

When this is the sensible daily you've got it bad

Things I love:
"I love the engine most of all; it's silky smooth and is a complete lunatic, revving as high as 9,500rpm before the bounce. The car wants to be thrashed and encourages you to do so. It also handles like it is on rails too - every corner is an absolute joy to tackle! The 19-inch alloys and other features exclusive to the R3 all make the car that little bit nicer too."

Things I hate:
"For a car that is no faster than a mid-range hot hatch, the running costs are ludicrous, I average 16mpg and tax is a whopping £490, it does have a thirst for oil too and checking the oil level so frequently is a bit of a pain. I don't like the looks much either, I find RX-8s to be quite ugly; though the R3 body kit mine has does improve the looks slightly."

Track day saw single digit mpg - and big grin

Costs:
"For a 21-year-old, insurance is pretty cheap, I pay £1,400 for both the RX-7 and RX-8 on a multi-car policy. Servicing is very cheap too; I am lucky enough to have a friend who not only does the work for next to nothing but is also a great mechanic who knows a lot about the RX-8's unique engine. I also run Bridgestone Potenzas - they're great tyres but my wallet isn't too keen on them."

Where I've been:
"I've been to a few Sunday Services, done a lot of hooning around Essex and Hertfordshire and I did my first track day (where I averaged 6mpg!) in February. I'd love to do a 'ring trip but that is pending a Lotto win."

What next?
"After going on the PHN American Dream Tour I really want a convertible V8 - so a TVR Chimaera is definitely what I'm aiming for within the next 18 months, but for now I'll just enjoy the lovely '8!"

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Want to share your car with PHers on Carpool? Email us at [e-mail]!

[Fastdruid]

16mpg sounds about right. Still somewhat regret selling ours but needed a more child friendly car so replaced it with a sensible family car, a Mazda 6 MPS. Which gets 18mpg.

Still fancy another one but I'd also go 2009+ R3 and the VED really stings on those.

[sat1983]

My FIL and on of these. I just don't get why you'd ever get one. Like you said, no quicker than a hot hatch and the thirst for both oil & petrol is a bit silly.

If I could afford to fuel a 16mpg car I'd choose just about anything else but the RX8!

[rmcoboy]

16mpg? Good work! We managed about 23 most of the time and that was when fuel was under a quid a litre. Ran it as a people carrier - two kids in the back and a two seat stroller in the boot. Try doing that in a 911. Great cars.

[gareth29]

I just dont get the rotary engined thing - the lack of torque, reliability, fuel consumption and depreciation are the main factors I think, that and memories of NSU's Ro80 woes. Guess thats why I bought RX7's Japanese antithesis - a 350Z.

[PhillipM]

I've never got anyone who says they lack torque either, but there you go.

[ftrigger]

sat1983 said:

I just don't get why you'd ever get one. Like you said, no quicker than a hot hatch and the thirst for both oil & petrol is a bit silly.

If I could afford to fuel a 16mpg car I'd choose just about anything else but the RX8!

Presumably because cars aren't just about straight line speed and acceleration ?
The RX8 has got exceptional handling.

[stedale]

I still want one, even at that mpg. Sure I've seen this guy and his car elsewhere youtube

[Theallotmentman]

So you bought a car you don't like the look of and that you find too expensive and that isn't as fast as you were hoping.....sounds like you thought about the purchase. Also that FD3 is ugly, what have you done to it?

[jimbobsimmonds]

PhillipM said:

I've never got anyone who says they lack torque either, but there you go.

They do feel like they lack torque, especially jumping from mine straight into the RX-8.

Don't get me wrong, within a minute of working out that the car needs to be driven differently i don't find the lack of torque a problem. That engine needs and wants to be revved. I had a laugh when I test drove one, great little car.

[stevebear]

I'm with allotmentman tbh.

Surely the application of man maths is for what you've set your heart on not something, engine aside, that by the sounds of it you don't actually like.

I like sound of the Subaru flat 4 but can't abide what they put it in, in any of their forms.

[rob.e]

I think this deserves some sort of man-maths medal.

From "I needed a cheap, economical and reliable car to get me to and from work to replace the Corsa which was falling to pieces" to Rx8 @ 16mpg is pretty epic mathing!

[Fastdruid]

rob.e said:

I think this deserves some sort of man-maths medal.

From "I needed a cheap, economical and reliable car to get me to and from work to replace the Corsa which was falling to pieces" to Rx8 @ 16mpg is pretty epic mathing!

All depends on the commute and how much fun it is. We were only doing 5k a year so the difference between that and anything equally quick is nothing (the 2mpg improvement the MPS gets is eaten by its liking for super but even run on 95 it's still only £200/year). The mpg is poor but I enjoyed every trip in ours. TBH part of the reason we found it's so poor is that it's so rewarding to rev it. May a time I'd catch myself attempting to drive it 'sensibly' at 7k+! Ooops.

[TrivsTom]

Should've just bought another corsa as a daily - my old 1.2 with a surprisingly high spec got 45mpg consistently for shed money, and have the FD as a weekend car as intended.

[velocgee]

ftrigger said:

sat1983 said:

I just don't get why you'd ever get one. Like you said, no quicker than a hot hatch and the thirst for both oil & petrol is a bit silly.

If I could afford to fuel a 16mpg car I'd choose just about anything else but the RX8!

Presumably because cars aren't just about straight line speed and acceleration ?
The RX8 has got exceptional handling.

+1

Edited by velocgee on Monday 28th April 12:32

[velocgee]

PhillipM said:

I've never got anyone who says they lack torque either, but there you go.

oh they do...

[leon9191]

God I wonder how much he paid for that, just looked in the classifieds and there are 2 examples like this at approx. £9k but you can get a 2006 car with very low miles for £2.5K and I know a chap who just bought one for 1500 quid with only 45k miles.

The moral of the story is one of these will cost you alot to own for their relative merits I think.

[sherman]

I use Falken 452 tyres on my rx8 and have previously used toyo t1r tyres and apart from the toyos running out in less than 10000 miles bothtypes of tyres have as much grip as the bridgestones.

16 - 20mpg is about average.

I get the feeling that the price has bottomed out for rx8s now

You only really need to check the oil once a month or every 1000 miles

Ved is only £270 on cars made before march 06

[dukebox9reg]

Now i'm looking at upsizing the house soon (so how a tinker space on the driveway, its the only excuse the wifes got left that I can't have a play toy) i'm being tempted by a PZ. They can be picked up for next to nothing now but 1) still can't decide if I like the noise they make. 2) Will it break down after 5 minutes and cost me double the purchase price to fix.

Hmmm. I agree the kit on the RX7 ain't a looker (prefer the 8)

[TinyCappo]

Fastdruid said:

rob.e said:

I think this deserves some sort of man-maths medal.

From "I needed a cheap, economical and reliable car to get me to and from work to replace the Corsa which was falling to pieces" to Rx8 @ 16mpg is pretty epic mathing!

All depends on the commute and how much fun it is. We were only doing 5k a year so the difference between that and anything equally quick is nothing (the 2mpg improvement the MPS gets is eaten by its liking for super but even run on 95 it's still only £200/year). The mpg is poor but I enjoyed every trip in ours. TBH part of the reason we found it's so poor is that it's so rewarding to rev it. May a time I'd catch myself attempting to drive it 'sensibly' at 7k+! Ooops.

Probably why hes only getting 16mpg and using so much oil too. The stepper motor driven OMP adjusts its thirst oil needs depending on the revs/load cane it everywhere or on a track day you can be reaching for the oil very quickly. Personally I have found its oil needs on a par with my father in laws passat diesel for commuting purposes.

Driven sensibly and in a commuter fashion they can be very rewarding in both senses. I currently do a 70mile a day commute in a S1 RX8 and whilst I don't see much more than about 23mpg I love every corner and have managed to get from 1:10 minutes down to about 45-50minutes traffic allowing all at legal speeds just being smoother and carrying far too much speed at times through the corners. I run a 150-200ml shot of castrol 2stroke as a premix and that makes a big improvement too.

[dukebox9reg]

Thats what it is on the front of the RX7. Dodge Viper.